This is a blog about the people, processes, thoughts, and opinions about technology from Autodesk.

June 06, 2008

Sustainability Examples at the Office

The other day we had a series of Autodesk Labs meetings at our McInnis facility. As part of our day, we held a team-building exercise. We divided ourselves into small teams and scoured the building for examples of Autodesk's commitment to operating as an environmentally responsible company. Senior Strategic Designer, Doug Look, led our exercise by providing a framework: POEMS. We were to look for examples of People, Objects, Environment, Messages, and Services related to sustainability. We took some pictures:

People

We meet for lunch in the office cafeteria rather than driving off-campus for lunch.

We use the stairs instead of the elevator.

Objects

We have replaced disposable water bottles with personal reusable containers.

Our cups are made of compostable materials.

Our disposable forks, spoons, and knives are made of corn and are biodegradable.

Environment

We turn thermostats up or down to conserve energy.

Our grounds have areas of low water vegetation.

Our parking lot is full of hybrid, electric, and high-efficiency vehicles.

Our cafeteria has shades to reduce energy consumption.

Messages

We use reclaimed water in our facilities.

We promoted Bike to Work Day on the coffee room bulletin board.

Services

A local center collects our cafeteria discards for recycling.

A service collects and recycles our discarded paper.

A service collects and recycles our toner cartridges.

Employee dry cleaning is centralized, picked up, and returned to work.

Comments

Sustainability Examples at the Office

The other day we had a series of Autodesk Labs meetings at our McInnis facility. As part of our day, we held a team-building exercise. We divided ourselves into small teams and scoured the building for examples of Autodesk's commitment to operating as an environmentally responsible company. Senior Strategic Designer, Doug Look, led our exercise by providing a framework: POEMS. We were to look for examples of People, Objects, Environment, Messages, and Services related to sustainability. We took some pictures:

People

We meet for lunch in the office cafeteria rather than driving off-campus for lunch.

We use the stairs instead of the elevator.

Objects

We have replaced disposable water bottles with personal reusable containers.

Our cups are made of compostable materials.

Our disposable forks, spoons, and knives are made of corn and are biodegradable.

Environment

We turn thermostats up or down to conserve energy.

Our grounds have areas of low water vegetation.

Our parking lot is full of hybrid, electric, and high-efficiency vehicles.

Our cafeteria has shades to reduce energy consumption.

Messages

We use reclaimed water in our facilities.

We promoted Bike to Work Day on the coffee room bulletin board.

Services

A local center collects our cafeteria discards for recycling.

A service collects and recycles our discarded paper.

A service collects and recycles our toner cartridges.

Employee dry cleaning is centralized, picked up, and returned to work.